Chudleigh Church of England Community Primary School

Age group 4–11 Inspection date(s) 27–28 June 2012 Inspection number 395333 Chudleigh Church of England Community Primary School Inspection report

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Unique reference number 113392 Local authority Devon Inspection number 395333 Inspection dates 27–28 June 2012 Lead inspector Ann Henderson HMI

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This inspection of the school was carried out under section 5 of the Education Act 2005.

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Type of school Primary School category Voluntary controlled Age range of pupils 4–11 Gender of pupils Mixed Number of pupils on the school roll 391 Appropriate authority The governing body Chair Seonaid Beasley Headteacher David Barnett Date of previous school inspection 30–31 January 2008 School address Lawn Drive Chudleigh Newton Abbot TQ13 0LS Telephone number 01626 852147 Fax number 01626 854032 Email address admin@chudleigh.devon.sch.uk achieve excellence in the care of children and young people, and in education and skills for learners of all ages. It regulates and inspects childcare and children's social care, and inspects the Children and Family Court Advisory Support Service (Cafcass), schools, colleges, initial teacher training, work-based learning and skills training, adult and community learning, and education and training in prisons and other secure establishments. It assesses council children’s services, and inspects services for looked

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after children, safeguarding and child protection. Further copies of this report are obtainable from the school. Under the Education Act 2005, the school must provide a copy of this report free of charge to certain categories of people. A charge not exceeding the full cost of reproduction may be made for any other copies supplied. If you would like a copy of this document in a different format, such as large print or Braille, please telephone 0300 123 4234, or email enquiries@ofsted.gov.uk . You may copy all or parts of this document for non-commercial educational purposes, as long as you give details of the source and date of publication and do not alter the information in any way. To receive regular email alerts about new publications, including survey reports and school inspection reports, please visit our website and go to ‘Subscribe’.

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T: 0300 123 4234 Textphone: 0161 618 8524 E: enquiries@ofsted.gov.uk W: www.ofsted.gov.uk You can use Parent View to give Ofsted your opinion on your child’s school. Ofsted will use the information parents and carers provide when deciding which schools to inspect and when.

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You can also use Parent View to find out what other parents and carers think about schools in England. You can visit www.parentview.ofsted.gov.uk, or look for the link on the main Ofsted website: www.ofsted.gov.uk

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Introduction

This inspection was carried out with two days' notice. Inspectors observed teaching and learning in 28 lessons taught by 15 teachers, of which five were joint observations with the headteacher and one joint observation with the deputy headteacher. In addition, inspectors heard nine pupils read, and also carried out short visits to classes to focus on behaviour and safety and the quality of pupils’ learning in lessons. Discussions were held with parents and carers, pupils, staff, including senior and middle leaders, the Chair of the Governing Body and the education improvement officer from the local authority. Inspectors took account of the responses to the online Parent View survey in planning the inspection, observed the school’s work, and looked at school documentation which included the school improvement plan, safeguarding documents, information on pupils’ attainment and progress, external monitoring and moderation reports and minutes of governing

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Introduction

body meetings. Inspectors analysed 168 questionnaires from parents and carers, 14 from staff and other questionnaires from 100 pupils.

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Information about the school

This school is a larger than average-sized primary school with two classes in each year group including two Reception classes. The proportion of pupils known to be eligible for free school meals is below average. Most pupils are from a White British background. Few pupils speak English as an additional language. The proportion of pupils supported at school action plus or with statements of special educational needs is below average. The school meets the government’s current floor standard, which sets the minimum expectations for pupils’ attainment and progress.

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Information about the school

There is a daily breakfast club and after-school club which are both run independently. This provision is inspected separately and the reports can be found on the Ofsted website. Inspection grades: 1 is outstanding, 2 is good, 3 is satisfactory, and 4 is inadequate Please turn to the glossary for a description of the grades and inspection terms

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Key findings

 Chudleigh is a satisfactory school where pupils are well cared for and feel safe. The school is not yet good because pupils’ achievement and the quality of teaching are only satisfactory. Schools whose overall effectiveness is judged satisfactory may receive a monitoring visit by an Ofsted inspector before their next section 5 inspection.

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Key findings

 Achievement is satisfactory. Children enter school with skills and abilities that are broadly in line with those expected for their age. Pupils leave the school having reached broadly average standards in writing and mathematics. Disabled pupils and those with special educational needs make similar progress to their peers.

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Key findings

 Teaching is satisfactory overall and much is good. However, teachers’ questioning does not always use pupils’ responses to develop their ideas and increase their understanding. Marking and feedback to pupils and target setting are in place, but are inconsistently applied.

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Key findings

 Pupils understand how to keep themselves safe and their behaviour is good. Most pupils say incidents of bullying are rare. They enjoy school and have positive attitudes to learning. Pupils of all ages and abilities show consideration and care for one another and they are polite and courteous. The caring approach shown by staff helps to meet the needs of pupils well.

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Key findings

 The headteacher provides effective and determined leadership. There is strength in the senior leadership team evident in their approach to improve assessment procedures. Performance management has been used well to set appropriate targets for staff in order to secure further improvement. Monitoring and evaluation are a key part of the school’s work. However, the use of assessment data to evaluate the impact of initiatives and interventions is limited and the skills of middle leaders in monitoring their areas of responsibility are underdeveloped. The governing body has a good understanding of the strengths and areas of weakness, but governors’ level of challenge in holding the school to account is less well developed. Inspection grades: 1 is outstanding, 2 is good, 3 is satisfactory, and 4 is inadequate Please turn to the glossary for a description of the grades and inspection terms

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What does the school need to do to improve further?

 By the end of July 2013, ensure that all pupils make consistently good progress in writing and mathematics, so that the very large majority reach above age-related levels by:  securing consistently good or better teaching in the large majority of lessons  increasing the pace and level of challenge during whole-class teaching  providing more opportunities for pupils to monitor their own progress towards achieving their targets  ensuring marking consistently provides pupils with effective guidance on how to improve their learning  making more effective use of teachers’ questioning, to expand and develop ideas and responses from pupils to further accelerate progress.

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What does the school need to do to improve further?

 Strengthen leadership and management by:  ensuring senior leaders make effective use of the assessment data to evaluate the impact of initiatives and interventions on pupils’ progress  developing the role of the middle leaders so that they play a greater part in monitoring, evaluating and improving the school  increasing the level of challenge the governing body provides in its monitoring and evaluation of the school’s work.

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Achievement of pupils

Pupils enjoy school, have good attitudes to learning and cooperate well with one another when working in pairs and groups. Most pupils say they learn a lot in lessons and almost all parents and carers agree. As one parent commented, ‘My child is always happy to go to school and has developed academically and as a whole person.’ Inspectors found that different groups of pupils, including disabled pupils, those who have special educational needs and those who are known to be eligible for free school meals, make satisfactory progress.

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Achievement of pupils

Children begin school in the Reception classes with the skills and knowledge expected for their age. They enjoy a variety of activities that encourage independence and cooperation. They make good progress and enter Year 1 with a good level of learning. From Year 1 to Year 6 progress slows, so that by the time pupils leave in Year 6 their attainment is average. Reading is promoted well through a wide range of interesting reading materials in the school library and in classrooms. Most pupils say they enjoy reading. A systematic programme to teach phonics (the sounds that letters make) is in place and operates well. Pupils are able to decode words and regular assessments are carried out to determine what pupils have achieved. Attainment in reading is above that in writing and mathematics. The Inspection grades: 1 is outstanding, 2 is good, 3 is satisfactory, and 4 is inadequate Please turn to the glossary for a description of the grades and inspection terms

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Achievement of pupils

school’s own data show that current attainment of pupils in both Year 2 and Year 6 in reading is just above the national average.

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Achievement of pupils

In lessons observed during the inspection, pupils made good progress when tasks were well matched to their learning needs, teachers’ questions promoted thinking and paired talk and collaborative group work were actively encouraged. In a Year 5 literacy lesson, pupils worked well in pairs and small groups. Teachers’ questioning encouraged pupils to consider the use of description and sentence structure used by authors in order to create suspense. By highlighting phrases in a text and justifying their reasoning with good explanations, pupils showed a good understanding of the task. In less-effective lessons, teachers miss opportunities to actively engage pupils in interesting and relevant activities because too much time is spent as a whole class, with lengthy teacher explanations and lack of pace, which hinders pupils’ progress.

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Quality of teaching

Although teaching is satisfactory overall, an increasing proportion is good. Teaching and a good range of stimulating activities in the Early Years Foundation Stage enable children to make good progress. Throughout the school, teaching promotes pupils’ personal development well, making a strong contribution to their spiritual, moral, social and cultural development. Relationships are good. A very large majority of parents and carers say their child is well taught. However, inspectors found that the proportion of consistently good teaching is not high enough to promote sustained good progress over time because of some inconsistencies in several important areas. As a result pupils achieve satisfactorily rather than well.

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Quality of teaching

Teachers use a range of effective strategies to engage and stimulate pupils including disabled pupils and those who have special educational needs. Interactive whiteboards are used well to explain activities, demonstrate strategies and support learning. In classrooms, attractive displays of pupils’ work record previous learning and are used as a source of reference for pupils. Pupils say they enjoy learning more when there is greater interaction and investigative activities. This was clearly evident in a Year 4 mathematics lesson where pupils were animated and excited as they played a ‘What’s my number?’ game. The teacher emphasised the importance of the use of correct mathematical language and effective strategies to narrow the options to enable pupils to correctly identify the hidden number stuck on their back! Many were successful, but it was evident through discussion that there were gaps in the

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Quality of teaching

subject knowledge of some pupils, which inhibited their progress.

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Quality of teaching

Recent improvements in assessment procedures provide teachers with accurate information on the attainment and progress of pupils. This is being used to good effect to plan activities to match the learning needs of all pupils, although opportunities are missed to adapt planning and extend and challenge pupils to make good progress in some lessons. The use of paired classes and teachers working alongside one another enhances opportunities for learning and enables them to closely focus on pupils’ particular learning needs during lessons. Targets for improvements in writing and mathematics are set across the school, but the Inspection grades: 1 is outstanding, 2 is good, 3 is satisfactory, and 4 is inadequate Please turn to the glossary for a description of the grades and inspection terms

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Quality of teaching

monitoring of targets and involvement of pupils in the process are inconsistent and do not provide pupils with sufficient information of the next and most important steps for improvement. Furthermore, although pupils’ work is marked regularly, the feedback given to them is inconsistent and they are not always clear how to improve their work.

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Behaviour and safety of pupils

All parents and carers who responded to the questionnaire say their child feels safe and is well looked after in school. Pupils also say they feel safe and know there are many adults around to help them if they have a problem. There is a clarity of purpose which is shared by staff that leads to the school’s positive and deserved reputation for inclusion and promoting good personal development and effective pastoral care. There is a noticeable respect between pupils and adults in the school. Pupils are keen to please and work hard in lessons. They enjoy learning because adults provide a range of interesting activities within the curriculum and during extra- curricular activities. Pupils enter school happily at the start of the school day and conduct themselves well. The positive school ethos that promotes the well-being of pupils and staff alike was commented on by one parent: ‘Chudleigh school has a

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Behaviour and safety of pupils

lovely welcoming community feel to it and the children are always happy to go; they have a strong ethos around values, sharing and contributing to the community.’

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Behaviour and safety of pupils

Behaviour is good in lessons and around the school. Discussion with pupils and scrutiny of behavioural records show that this is the norm. There are some pupils who demonstrate challenging behaviour. Inspection evidence shows that behaviour is managed well, with good support from staff and outside agencies. Incidences of bullying are rare and pupils confirmed this. Pupils are aware of different types of bullying and know who to turn to should a concern arise. Attendance is average and records show it is beginning to rise.

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Leadership and management

Since his appointment, the headteacher has identified systems and procedures that needed to be implemented for school improvement to have a positive impact on pupils’ achievement. However, some staff turbulence and the legacy of previously inaccurate assessments have created additional challenges. Nevertheless, these have been managed well and currently there is greater staff stability, and, together with more accurate assessments of pupils’ attainment and progress, and recent improvements in pupils’ rate of progress, the school is in a stronger position to improve further. Self-evaluation is accurate and the most important areas for improvement are included in the school improvement plan. The leadership structure is stronger, with senior leaders providing a clear vision for the future which is communicated well across the school community. Consequently, the school has a satisfactory capacity for sustained improvement. The impact of middle leaders’ roles

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Leadership and management

on raising achievement is variable, particularly with regard to monitoring their subject and evaluating its influence on raising standards. The performance of teaching staff is rigorously monitored and teachers are held to account for the Inspection grades: 1 is outstanding, 2 is good, 3 is satisfactory, and 4 is inadequate Please turn to the glossary for a description of the grades and inspection terms

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Leadership and management

progress of their pupils. Professional development has been used well to improve teaching skills.

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Leadership and management

The governing body is committed to improving its practice and is developing systems to hold the school to account through revised committee structures and specific monitoring responsibilities for members the governing body. As a result, the governing body is better equipped to challenge school leaders and hold them accountable for whole-school improvement. This has been a relative weakness in the past.

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Leadership and management

The school has appropriate systems to keep children safe and the arrangements for safeguarding meet statutory requirements. The school promotes equality of opportunity satisfactorily. Leaders identify where groups of pupils underperform and take decisive action to close any gaps, for example, between boys’ and girls’ performance. The school tackles discrimination effectively and this contributes significantly to the harmonious community.

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Leadership and management

The curriculum in the Early Years Foundation Stage provides a good balance of adult- led and child-initiated activities, which promotes learning well. In Key Stage 1 and Key Stage 2 the creative, topic-based curriculum has a positive impact on pupils’ enjoyment of learning. It provides rich, interesting and stimulating opportunities to engage pupils, although it is less well focused on promoting literacy and numeracy skills. As a result, it only meets pupils’ needs satisfactorily. However, there is a strong emphasis on opportunities for pupils to develop sporting, musical and spiritual links with a wide range of additional and enriching activities, which underpins good provision for pupils’ spiritual, moral, social and cultural development. The mini- Olympics taking place during the inspection as part of National Sports week was a good example of one such opportunity which pupils thoroughly enjoyed.

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Grade Judgement Description

Grade 1 Outstanding These features are highly effective. An outstanding school provides exceptionally well for all its pupils’ needs. Grade 2 Good These are very positive features of a school. A school that is good is serving its pupils well. Grade 3 Satisfactory These features are of reasonable quality. A satisfactory school is providing adequately for its pupils. Grade 4 Inadequate These features are not of an acceptable standard. An inadequate school needs to make significant improvement in order to meet the needs of its pupils. Ofsted inspectors will make further visits until it improves.

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Type of school Outstanding Good Satisfactory Inadequate

Nursery schools 54 42 2 2 Primary schools 14 49 32 6 Secondary schools 20 39 34 7 Special schools 33 45 20 3 Pupil referral units 9 55 28 8 All schools 16 47 31 6

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Type of school Outstanding Good Satisfactory Inadequate

New school inspection arrangements have been introduced from 1 January 2012. This means that inspectors make judgements that were not made previously. The data in the table above are for the period 1 September to 31 December 2011 and represent judgements that were made under the school inspection arrangements that were introduced on 1 September 2009. These data are consistent with the latest published official statistics about maintained school inspection outcomes (see www.ofsted.gov.uk). The sample of schools inspected during 2010/11 was not representative of all schools nationally, as weaker schools are inspected more frequently than good or outstanding schools. Primary schools include primary academy converters. Secondary schools include secondary academy converters, sponsor-led academies and city technology colleges. Special schools include special academy converters and non-maintained special schools.

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Type of school Outstanding Good Satisfactory Inadequate

Percentages are rounded and do not always add exactly to 100.

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Common terminology used by inspectors

Achievement: the progress and success of a pupil in their learning and development taking account of their attainment.

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Common terminology used by inspectors

Attainment: the standard of the pupils’ work shown by test and examination results and in lessons.

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Common terminology used by inspectors

Attendance: the regular attendance of pupils at school and in lessons, taking into account the school’s efforts to encourage good attendance.

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Common terminology used by inspectors

Behaviour: how well pupils behave in lessons, with emphasis on their attitude to learning. Pupils’ punctuality to lessons and their conduct around the school.

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Common terminology used by inspectors

Capacity to improve: the proven ability of the school to continue improving based on its self-evaluation and what the school has accomplished so far and on the quality of its systems to maintain improvement.

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Common terminology used by inspectors

Floor standards: the national minimum expectation of attainment and progression measures.

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Common terminology used by inspectors

Leadership and management: the contribution of all the staff with responsibilities, not just the governors and headteacher, to identifying priorities, directing and motivating staff and running the school.

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Common terminology used by inspectors

Learning: how well pupils acquire knowledge, develop their understanding, learn and practise skills and are developing their competence as learners.

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Common terminology used by inspectors

Overall effectiveness: inspectors form a judgement on a school’s overall effectiveness based on the findings from their inspection of the school.

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Common terminology used by inspectors

Progress: the rate at which pupils are learning in lessons and over longer periods of time. It is often measured by comparing the pupils’ attainment at the end of a key stage with their attainment when they started.

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Common terminology used by inspectors

Safety: how safe pupils are in school, including in lessons; and their understanding of risks. Pupils’ freedom from bullying and harassment. How well the school promotes safety, for example e-learning.

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carers to share with their children. It describes Ofsted’s

main findings from the inspection of their school.

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Chudleigh TQ13 0LS

Thank you for welcoming inspectors to your school, and special thanks to those of you who took the time to talk to us. We found you extremely interesting to talk to, and very polite and helpful.

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Chudleigh TQ13 0LS

Your school is providing you with a satisfactory education. You behave well, and feel safe in school and know there is always someone to talk to if you have a problem. You enjoy learning and particularly enjoy all the additional activities provided by the school. Teachers mark your work, but we think that you could be consistently provided with more information about how to improve your work. We have asked the school to always make sure that teachers help you to make good progress by ensuring work is always challenging, and that you are helped to understand how you can use your targets to check on your own progress. Some of your teachers are very good at asking you questions that make you think hard. We have asked that all teachers learn how to do this to help you to increase your rate of progress.

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Chudleigh TQ13 0LS

You told us you enjoy many of the things you learn about in school. Your headteacher, the staff and members of the governing body are doing many good things to make your school even better. We have asked members of the governing body to make sure they regularly challenge the school to improve further and for senior leaders to check on the progress of new initiatives and the additional support they provide for you, to help you to make the best progress you can. We have also asked that those members of staff who lead areas of the curriculum check whether all the subjects you learn in school are helping you to make good progress.

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Chudleigh TQ13 0LS

We enjoyed visiting your school. Continue to work hard and, most of all, enjoy your learning. Thank you again for your help.

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Chudleigh TQ13 0LS

Ann Henderson Her Majesty's Inspector procedures set out in the guidance 'Complaining about inspections', which is available from Ofsted’s website: www.ofsted.gov.uk . If you would like Ofsted to send you a copy of the guidance, please telephone 0300 123 4234 , or email enquiries@ofsted.gov.uk .

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